Page 8 Advertisements Column 2

Greymouth Evening Star, 17 August 1948, Page 8

SEPARATE J. FORCE BODY NOT FAVOURED (PA.) WELLINGTON, August 16. No fruitful purpose could be served by the formation of a separate J Force Association and only further division and sectarianism among returned men could result from such a move, said Mr Rex W. Thorstensen, J. Force representative on the Dominion executive of the 2nd N.Z.E.F. Association today. He said that after interviewing scores of men just returned from Japan he felt these Kiwis believed his association had capably represented (hem in the past and would continue to do so. The rehabilitation problems of J Force would be almost identical with those of earlier returned comrades of the Second World War and successful rehabilitation could not be achieved by minorities acquiring gains or being granted privileges at the expense of others who through no fault of their own might have been ineligible for the same type of service, he said. Mr Thorstensen said the majority of J Force men were fully satisfied that the 2nd N.Z.E.F. Association had voiced the opinions of the whole force in ilscriticsm of the R.S.A. offer of as-' sistance in forming a separate organisation. “We do not want R.S.A. assistance; it has come too late,” he said. The feelings of R.S.A. veterans were respected, but the younger returned men did not need, and would not accept, any belated / charity from that quarter. ‘ , Every member of the 2nd N.Z.E.F. Association had the highest respect for the R.S.A. president (Sir Howard Kippenberger) ; but surely his recent expression of regret that a separate body had ever been formed did not square with the R.S.A.’s present efforts to divide the ranks still more by forming' yet another separate body for J. Force men.